Stranger Things creators Matt Duffer and Ross Duffer, also known as the Duffer Brothers, have announced production on the show’s fifth and final season has been halted due to the ongoing Hollywood writers' strike.
The duo made the announcement on Twitter, stating: “Duffers here. Writing does not stop when filming begins. While we’re excited to start production with our amazing cast and crew, it is not possible during this strike.
“We hope a fair deal is reached soon so we can all get back to work. Until then — over and out.”
The show is among many affected by the recent writers' strike, which was announced on Tuesday by the Writers Guild of America.
The Guild not only hopes to address lower royalty payments during the age of streaming, but also to curb the use of AI in film production in future.
The strike follows weeks of failed negotiations with the major studios — Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Warner Bros Discovery, NBC Universal, Paramount Plus and Sony — under the umbrella of their own trade association, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The Guild described AMPTP’s response as “wholly insufficient given the existential crisis writers are facing".
Remarks at this week's Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills by top Hollywood executives have only added further fuel to the fire, with producer Todd Lieberman stating: “In the next three years, you're going to see a movie that was written by AI made ... a good one.”
"Not just scripts. Editing, all of it ... storyboarding a movie, anything," added Fox entertainment chief executive Rob Wade. "AI in the future, maybe not next year or the year after, but if we're talking 10 years? AI is going to be able to do absolutely all of these things."
Several topical daily shows have already begun airing reruns in the place of original programming, and some are expecting the strikes to run into the summer; which could cause several other TV shows to get delayed. Production shut down on the CBS show Evil, after being disrupted by picketers on Friday, and shooting on Billions reportedly ground to a halt in New York, after a line of picketers blocked access to the set.
MTV has also shifted its Movie and TV Awards to a taped, rather than live, broadcast, as host Drew Barrymore stepped down in support of the strikes.
"I have listened to the writers, and in order to truly respect them, I will pivot from hosting the MTV Movie & TV Awards live in solidarity with the strike," Barrymore told Variety.